Yong Tow Foo/Yong Tau Fu Recipe

For the hungry eyes such as this, this, and this, please ogle your food porn. And while you are at it, wear a napkin around your neck. (Rumor has it that a certain uncle is contemplating a new career in tissue paper manufacturing, specially for Rasa Malaysia readers!)

The secret ingredient of this delicious dish is Cha Ca Fish Meat Emulsion. Easily found at the frozen food section in Asian food stores, this fish paste tastes fresh and non-fishy.

While the Yong Tow Foo dishes served in Malaysia are usually drenched in a clear and soupy broth, I prefer my Yong Tow Foo steamed, lightly pan-fried and topped with yellow bean sauce. (This is, again, another homestyle recipe that I learned from my mother.)

So, without further ado, here is my recipe for Rasa Malaysia Yong Tow Foo or stuffed tofu, chili, and okra with fish paste.

I’ve been reading your blog for a while but never commented — always been very impressed, though! You do a wonderful job here. All my favourite recipes! I’m from Malaysia too and I can see that we share pretty much the same taste in food — seafood and soy products are my two big favourites, too! And hot and sour flavours like assam pedas.

The Yong Tau Foo looks lovely — can’t wait for the recipe. Is this Penang-style YTF? I’m from Ipoh and there the dish is usually served without sauce in a light, clear broth…. And yup, I always go for the chili, the okra, and the tofu! (And also the bitter gourd, mmmm….)

is that taucheo sauce ? How I wish that little drop of sauce beside the stuffed red chilli is what came out from my mouth while biting on the yong tow foo…the “juice” just oozes out….too “juicy” nice leow! You make this Yong Tow Foo and sell won’t make money lah…stuffing so much…lugi leow…..But then, you can stuff it full and charge a premium …heh heh…;p quick quick post leh…lucky i read this in morning…if not, pillow also wet ah…

Just started to read your culinary blog a few days ago. Have to say I am very impressed with your entries. It’s everything: the wonderful pictures, excellent recipe and even the lay out is brilliant.

Anyway, can’t help this time to chip in some comments :) BTW, just wondering if u can make the meat fish emulsion from scratche. I don’t think i can found any ready made fish paste here in KL (Err, if any KL-ians could find the fish paste anywhere at the local stores, please let me know). I’m a hantu yong tau foo and it would be brill if I can show off to my family that I can make it from scratch!

BTW, were the okras slimy? I know of okras to be slimy when cooked. How did this one go? I wanted to buy okras for a fish curry (from a premix, not your sophisticated Assam Pedas), but only needed to use a couple. The rest I can now make this Yong Tow Foo, but I am still wary of okras – my first time cooking this, so need your advice. :)

Fraggle Freak – thanks so much for your kind words and yes, you can call me RM. :)

I haven’t attempted to make the fish paste from scratch, but check this out. This might help you.

Hey Sue – yes, I ran into the same problem earlier today. Those fried tofu puffs are ready made so I didn’t fry them. ;)

In regards to frying crispy tofus, here are what I usually do: 1) make sure you use paper towels to dry the tofu before frying, 2) If you use a wok, heat up enough oil to cover at least 70% of the tofu pieces and make sure that the oil is very very hot before you start frying, 3) or you can use a deep fryer. ;)

Simcooks – actually the reason why I love okras is because of the slimy texture. My cousins and I used to call them “nua nua cai” (slimy vegetables in Hokkien when we were kids!) This one is not too slimy, just a tint of it and very tender and nice, plus you steam them and then lightly pan-fried so they won’t get overly slimy. You will like them.

haiya, i actually had to look up google map to see where was irvine..i thought it was some remote town in the interior of california, if there’s such a thing, but turns out you’re next to anaheim sum more!!!

HAHAHA, no wonder got easy access to all this asian stuff. you’re so lucky to get that cha ca fish paste. fish paste here is so unpredictable, can have textures ranging from johnson baby powder to dunlop tyres.

oh, fraggle freak, of course you can buy fish paste in any supermarket or wet market in KL!!! consistency in quality is an issue.

my great grandmother and grandmother used to use ikan parang, scrape off the meat of the flesh, and using a chopper/cleaver, proceed to chop chop chop, add a bit of flour here and there, just a bit, to bind, chop chop chop until it forms a paste.

Yong Tow Foo is another food that I missed a lot. Will try this out with the store bought fish paste. My late-mom used to make excellent fish paste and yong tow foo. Too bad, I did not learn the skill from her. Anyway, I dont think I can find fresh `gow yue` here in North America.

Rasa, I love your website, and use it as gospel for trying new Asian Delights, however it is an exercise in masochism.

I am currently living on an island in the Caribbean, where getting many ingredients is not possible (with the exception of Indian supplies). We have only one Asian market and it is modestly stocked. I so miss the metro areas with umpteen Asian groceries. I used to be overwhelmed when I went in and had no clue what to buy. Now I have an idea…

Brings back memories. My mum use to make the fish paste from scratch but now has gone to container fish paste like you. She also yonged “semi-hard” tofu, eggplant, mushroom caps and jalepenos. The jalepeno halves were my favorite.

Also wanted to say that I enjoy your blog. Found a lot of recipes that my mum use to make when I was young. Too bad I didn’t pay attention to her cooking back then. Thanks You!